Cancer Victim Identity for Individuals with Histories of Cancer and Childhood Sexual Abuse

Cancer Victim Identity for Individuals with Histories of Cancer and Childhood Sexual Abuse
McDonnell, Glynnis; Sucala, Madalina; Goldsmith, Rachel; Montgomery, Guy; Schnur, Julie
2017-03-04 00:00:00
Identifying as a ‘cancer victim’ has been linked to adverse psychosocial sequelae in individuals who have been diagnosed with cancer. Being a childhood sexual abuse (CSA) survivor may predispose individuals towards a “victim” identity in general. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of identifying as a ‘cancer victim’ among CSA survivors who were diagnosed with cancer as adults, and to explore psychological factors associated with identification as a cancer victim. 105 adults reporting both a history of CSA and of having been diagnosed with cancer as an adult were recruited through Amazon Mechanical Turk. Variables assessed included CSA severity, abuse-related powerlessness, general mastery, and cancer victim identity. Fifty-one percent of the sample endorsed a cancer victim identity. Path analysis revealed that abuse-related powerlessness was related to decreased feelings of general mastery, which was in turn associated with cancer victim identification (x
2 = .12, DF = 1, p < .73; RMSEA = .00; SRMR = .01: Bentler CFI = 1.0). From a clinical perspective, the results suggest that increasing general mastery in CSA survivors in the cancer setting may be an important mechanism for attenuating the risk for developing a cancer victim identity and, presumably, for downstream adverse psychosocial sequelae.
http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.pngJournal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive-Behavior TherapySpringer Journalshttp://www.deepdyve.com/lp/springer-journals/cancer-victim-identity-for-individuals-with-histories-of-cancer-and-0oKuJ5xTEp

Cancer Victim Identity for Individuals with Histories of Cancer and Childhood Sexual Abuse